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Arc: After the End
Chapter One- Damaged upon Arrival
Xavier Institute for the Gifted, Bayville, New York
Late August
The boy known as Uzumaki Naruto sat in the cabin of the Blackbird clearly having seen better days and only somewhat aware of the man standing over him. The most obvious clues were the dark circles under his eyes and pale complexion. If those who knew him best were here they might also point to his choice of attire as proof that he was most certainly not in his happy place. A grey long-sleeved shirt and faded jeans with not so much as a thread of orange in sight.
"Alright hedgehog hair," The short, feral man in the black leather uniform interjected gruffly, "we're here." Naruto, his expression looked somewhat dazed, blinked and looked out the window. The dark night sky was gone, instead was they were now in some kind of underground lair. The blonde grabbed his bag and jacket, his movements mechanical, forced. The Canadian's rough features softened somewhat, "Piece of advice kid," Logan said to Naruto as walked past him, the young ninja stopped but didn't turn around, "take it from a guy who's seen the elephant more then once and got trampled: What happened, happened," He stated, "Ain't no undoing that, only real choice is movin forward."
Naruto looked at him as if to say something but chose silence. There was a dead look in the shinobi's eye's Logan had seen before. The look of men who had gone to battle but didn't know how to cope with it. Men that either ate their own guns or took the slow route with alcohol and stronger substances, "If this kid's a ninja he may be considering Seppuku, might want to keep an eye on him." Logan decided as caught up with Naruto, the healing might rate make suicide difficult but not impossible.
When the ramp was lowered and they exited the craft, as they did two people entered the cavernous hanger. Charles had arranged for Naruto to be brought in the middle of the night so he wouldn't swarmed by the other students. Logan wasn't surprised to see Scott was with Professor, slim had clearly been worried about bringing someone unbalanced to the school. The gruff Canadian wondered how much more worried if he knew what Chuck claimed was living inside the kid's head.
The blond teen glanced briefly at Xavier who's ever pensive expression warmed at the sight of the ninja, "Naruto I'd like to welcome you to the Institute," He then gestured to the person standing next to him, "Allow me to introduce one of my top students: Scott Summers." Scott was tall, somewhat older than Naruto with dark red hair styled with anal precision. With his eyes hidden behind ruby quartz lenses and his alert expression many would've found intimidating. But there was no hostility, only caution and concern.
The field leader of the X-Men extended his hand to Naruto who seemed to take a minute to notice the gesture. The ninja did shake his but struck Scott as being lost inside his own head. Having been briefed by the Professor about Naruto's "situation" Cyclops couldn't blame the guy for being out of it. The young mutant leader had initial been concerned that the ninja represented a danger to the others.
Despite choosing what struck Scott as amoral profession Naruto was clearly suffering from everything he had seen. He himself was no stranger to tragedy, he knew how isolated pain could make you feel. He could almost imagine Jean telling him to be nice not judgmental, "We prepped a room for you, I can take you there if you'd like." He offered, "You look like you could use the rest." Naruto hesitantly followed the X-Man leaving Logan and the professor alone,
"The kid's a wreck Chuck," Logan stated, "he's gonna need a lot of help. Some peace and quiet would help but good luck with that here."
"We shall do what we can for him." In the morning he would brief the students about the institute's newest resident. He would have to make sure that he only gave them the bare minimum of information. Both out of respect for the boy's privacy but also for the sake of the other children. That last year had fairly hard on all the students and didn't want to damage their innocence any further. He doubted Naruto would want to tell strangers of the things he had endured in the other world anyways.
The Next Morning
Sleep had proven as elusive here as it did back on the island but some part of him did appreciate the more spacious grounds. Deep in the woods Naruto found solace away from the students of this strange school. The way they stared and whispered reminded him all to much of the dark days of his childhood. He may not have felt the same fear and malice in their actions as he had in his old classmates. But the similarities were however close enough to remind him that he really had fallen far; once more his life was without bonds or purpose.
The punishment for losing the battle, the war, and the whole fucking world. For all the false hope he had given others, for all the broken promises. Naruto didn't consider himself religious by any stretch of the imagination but didn't discount the idea that this was some kind of hell. A place where he couldn't connect with people the way he once had, at first because of language and now because...
"I can't anymore." People had become abstract concepts for him since arriving in this "world", like he couldn't see them as people on some level anymore. He wondered if it was this was made worse by the general strangeness of the people here.
Both Moria and Xavier had called what he was experiencing "dissociation" and had tried to assure him that is a normal part of what people who had seen war. He wondered if that was the reason for Kakashi-sensei's reclusive lifestyle and why Jiraiya had spent his life as a wanderer. Naruto wanted to ask them if porn addiction was a risk for him as well but he was unsure of how much he could trust them.
For all he knew this could be the Infinite Tsukuyomi, this whole world could the warped fabrication of a madman's dream. There was no real way to test his theory on his own and Kurama was beyond pissed with him. The demon hadn't taken a near death experience very well and had opted to give him the silent treatment.
A female voice could be heard speaking, from the tree branch he was perched on Naruto could see three of them dressed in strange (to him) civilian clothes in a small clearing. A petite brunette with her hair tied up in a ponytail in a way that reminded him of Ayame helped set up a blanket for what looked like a picnic.
A slightly taller and more filled out dark-skinned girl helped her. With them though had to be one of the most unique people Naruto had ever seen. He looked like a blue demon pointed ears, a spade tipped tail, and three large digits on both his hands and feet in place of normal fingers and toes. Could that masked bastard really have imagined all these strange things?
"This is a guy who spent years pretending to be retarded," Naruto thought to himself, "I can't really assume anything." The "demon" was carrying a backpack and cooler that he opened up once the blanket was set up. Judging by the food Naruto guessed this was a picnic, a private gathering of friends to be sure. He watched wondering if should reveal himself to them or just leave. If none of this was real though what was the harm? Did right and wrong exist in an imaginary world? Could he do whatever he wished?
It was a concept that sent a shiver up of both fear and excitement through him. All his life he had held himself back in one way or another, a strange concept for those who had grown up around him. This was the boy who had spent his childhood devoted to pranks and vandalism. The thing he had never told anyone was that the people who were on the receiving end of the worse pranks were people he honestly would've rather decked. During the battle with Sasuke all those years ago Naruto suspected in the absence of his enhanced curse mark he probably would've killed the Uchiha in his demon fueled rage.
He had come to terms with those repressed feelings at the Falls of Truth but now it was as if the recently healed wounds had been ripped open. Honestly he didn't know if could or should take the high road again. He just didn't feel up to it anymore, the fire that had driven him was gone. He watched them interact with one another, their laughter, their smiles, and the little gestures of affection they shared.
Since it was a pleasantly warm day and with the end of summer nigh such days would soon be gone, they had decided to go for a picnic in the forested grounds of the Institute. They had hoped to make a group activity but the others had plans so it was just the three of them to enjoy the food and chat about the latest and strangest happenings at the institute,
"So he's an alien?" Amanda Sefton's disbelief was quite apparent as Kurt and Kitty tried to tell her about the strange new student that had be brought to the Institute during the night.
"Vellzhe professor said zhat he's basically human just from zhis other dimension." The elf explained as he handed his girlfriend a sandwich from the basket and a drink he fished out of the cooler with, "For you liebchen."Amanda smiled and kissed him on his velvety furred cheek as she took the offered food.
"Thanks baby." She cooed before turning to look at Kitty who smiled at them weakly. The couple felt a little bad for Kitty, she had recently endured a fairly bad break up with Lance. The normally bubbly girl had been understandably down lately as a result of it all, "So Kitty have you heard anything interesting about the new guy?"
"No," she shrugged, "the professor was totally cryptic about him. We know his name is Naruto, he like not from around here, and he has problems."
"That's all he told you guys?" They both simply shrugged,
"He doesn't tell us much most of zhe time liebchen." Kurt told her, Amanda thought they both looked a little uncomfortable, "He usually has his reasons." The German boy said reassuringly as started serving himself some food. The two X-Men were silent leaving her to wonder if she had struck some nerve. They ate and made small talk, Kitty seemed to perk up as they started talking about the latest celebrity gossip. The girls gasped and giggled as they discussed the latest intrigues out of Hollywood, Kurt made an admirable effort to pay attention.
It was when Amanda rested her head on her boyfriends shoulder for comfort that she noticed they weren't alone. She saw a figure perched in a tree at the edge of the clearing, his posture not unlike Kurt's "Does the new guy have weird spiky hair?"
Naruto watched as all three of them looked up at him appearing both surprised and unnerved. After a moment of talking amongst themselves the one that looked like a demon vanished in a flash of yellow light and smoke. A heartbeat later he appeared before Naruto who's nostrils were hit with the smell of sulfur. Being in his presence the ninja knew this guy wasn't a demon at all. He gave off no malevolent chakra or intent, the blue-furred guy actually managed a smile. It was clear they weren't happy about him watching them but the teleporter managed a friendly smile anyways,
"Uh...Hi zhere, I'm Kurt Wagner" He introduced himself awkwardly, Naruto wondered briefly if this was all real. Was Kurt and the rest of this strange world nothing but the by product of a madman's dream? Was that why he had been confined first to an island and now this "school"? Looking at an increasingly nervous Kurt he had to wonder if the guy would know he was an illusion if that were the case? Rather than give himself a migraine pondering increasingly complex philosophical questions he said:
"Uzumak- Naruto Uzumaki," and shook the furred hand that had been extended to him, the shinobi tried to sound friendly but judgingby Kurt's still worried expression he hadn't succeeded, "It used to be so easy."
"Ve do have some extra food left if you'd like to join us?" Naruto did feel a little hungry, was the fact that he still ate a sign that this was all real? Meanwhile Kurt felt as though he was beginning to understand what Xavier meant by this guy having "profound mental healthproblems in dire need of treatment". The way he seemed to get lost inside his head between responses was fairly concerning. But the Professor wouldn't have brought someone truly dangerous to the Institute without giving them all a proper warning, right? Then again he had let them go to school without telling them their principal was Mystique. Kurt also suspect the Professor had been very aware that the shapeshifter was his mother for quite sometime before Rogue's nightmare.
"Sure" He answered finally and leapt down from the oak to Kurt's surprise. Naruto landed on his feet apparently no worse for the wear, the elf ported on the ground beside him, "So vhat do think of zhe Institute?"
"It's better then the island," Naruto muttered as they stepped into the clearing, "way more room." He added trying to sound a little less bitter,
"How long vere you zhere?"
"I..I don't know really." He said, Kurt could hear a trace fear in the other's voice and see it coloring his expression. It reminded him of Rouge right after her powers had gone haywire, when she had confided in him how deeply she had feared for her sanity. Kurt wondered what a terrible thing it would be to no longer be able to trust your own thoughts and perceptions. He stopped and placed a hand on the blonde's shoulder offered a sympathetic smile. Naruto flinched and froze momentarily. At first Kurt thought it was because of his appearance but Naruto looked shocked, not scared.
Thinking about it Naruto actually didn't seem afraid of him, most people were scared out of their minds first they saw his real self. He considered asking about that but good manners compelled him to formally introduce him to girls, "Naruto, these lovey women are my lady love Amanda and my good friend Kitty Pride." Both girls smiled and rolled her eyes at Kurt's theatrics. Naruto muttered a quiet hello and accepted a sandwich offered by the brunette who regarded him curiously with those soft blue doe eyes .
"Can I like, ask you something?" Naruto seemed uncertain, he had gotten his fill of questions from the Doctor and the Professor. It took him a moment to recognize it was a simple request.
"Just a couple of questions are okay I guess." The idea that it was all an illusion was ever present in the back of his mind. Without Kurama's help there was no breaking a genjutsu of this level anyways so he might as well make the best of it.
They sat in the clearing surrounded by trees as the boy from another world spoke in melancholic voice of a place where mystical powers and talking animals were accepted facts of life. In their time as X-Men -or dating one in Amanda's case- they had encountered a lot of strange things but if what he was telling them was true Naruto was a whole new level of weird.
"You're a ninja?" Kurt's golden eyes were wide as his inner anime fanboy took over, his previous fears forgotten"A real ninja?" His tail swishing back and forth clearly excited, a rubber pirate would've been cooler but Kurt was still pretty psyched.
The girls watched with raised eyebrows as the elf began pestering him various questions about ninja powers and weaponry. Naruto at first answering his questions reluctantly but relented quite easily, "Somebody has a new man crush." Kitty said in a sing song tone,
"Oh no," Amanda gasped dramatically, "who will break the news to Scott?" Kurt's admiration of the X-Men leader had a source of amusement for them and the subject lewd innuendo for others. The resulting giggle fit briefly caught the boys attention but they both seemed to chalk it up to something unrelated to them.
"We should step if Kurt doesn't wind down in a bit." Kitty said as she laid down on the blanket, she seemed to watching the clouds that drifted lazily overhead. One partially blocked out the sun casting a shadow over the clearing. Amanda noticed something similar happening to Kitty's demeanor, she hadn't been the same since the break up?"
"We're friends, right Kitty?" She kept her voice low as she scooted closer to Kitty,
"Yeah," She replied hoping this wasn't about what she was afraid it was, "Why?"
"What really happened between you and Lance?"
"Nothing!" The normally cheerful girl snapped, "I just finally figured what a total asshole he is!"
"Kurt told me the Professor had to beg your parents for you to be allowed back." Amanda said calmly while Kitty found herself very tempted to phase the elf's brain out of his skull,"Did...did he hit you?" She asked wondering if her parents found bruises or something. Lance had never been violent with her outside the battlefield but there was a first time for everything.
"Did anyone ever like tell you about when I first got my powers?"
"No" Amanda replied wondering what this had to with anything, "I don't think so." Kitty then proceeded to her about when her powers first manifested. About howthe X-Men and Lance had approached her and the near fatale outcome of it. Amanda's mouth was hanging open by that end of the story. She didn't know Lance especially well but she would be giving him a wide berth from now on.
"During the second year though he seemed to grow a conscience and I thought I could help him. We dated and broke up and dated again." Kitty said twirling her hand, "I thought after that thing with Apocalypse we could make it work but we were just too different, he felt the same way."
"That sounds like a pretty civilized break up." Amanda commented,
"That's like what I thought." Kitty's voice cracked, "Then Lance calls one day and left a drunken rant-slash-plea on our answering machine for us to get back together. Including a graphically detailed account of how special he thought our first time together was!"
"Who found the message?"
"My dad," She sobbed, "I don't think it would have been so bad if it had anyone else."
"I'm guessing they didn't approve of you two dating?" Amanda asked rhetorically to which Kitty responded by breaking down,
"I had never told them!" She sobbed, "I walked into the room when my dad was listening to that stupid message and oh my god the way he looked at me!" That had to have been the absolute worst way for them to find out about a relationship they probably would've hit the roof over in the best of situations. Amanda hugged Kitty in an effort to comfort the heartbroken girl.
Kurt had been practically bouncing around the ninja as he demonstrated more techniques. The ninja seemed to have become a little more willing to show off abilities to the eager teleporter. Naruto had started to make hand signs for one of his "jutsu" as he turned to call the girls when he noticed something was wrong. Kurt's eyes widened upon seeing Kitty wiping her eyes,
"Kaztchen?" his voice filled worry yet barely above a whisper.
In a flash of smoke and brimstone he appeared by the girls, "Vhat'svrongvith her?" He asked Amanda,
"She's just not feeling good," His girlfriend said quickly, "let's just get her back to Institute." Kurt nodded and looked back at Naruto whojust looked at Kitty with a blank expression, "Kurt," Amanda said getting his attention, "You can get her back to the institute faster, I'll stay and pick up the mess."Kurt nodded then turned to Kitty,
"Wait," Naruto said surprising them all, "go with your friends Amanda-san. I'll...I'll take care of this," He said gesturing to the remains of the picnic.
"Are you sure?" Amanda asked seeing what a mess it was, the ninja nodded before conjuring several copies of himself with a gesture and a phrase.
"I guess that settles it." Kurt said in a deadpan before teleporting them away leaving Naruto alone. His copies began to pick the trash while the ninja sat under a tree. He seen the tears and heard the pain in Kitty's voice but frighteningly enough it justdidn't bother him the way it once would have. Granted girls had always been hard for him to understand, mass murderers he could connect with just fine. It was however the virtual indifference he felt that was concerning but if this was all an illusion what was the point of caring?
"But what if this place is real?" He asked no one as he looked skyward, "If it's real I have no way to go home," Naruto said quietly, "If I can't get home," thoughts of Jiraiya, his parents, the Third, everyone who had given their lives for him or for Konoha. To give him a chance to create a world of peace "All that sacrifice would be in vain, completely...completely meaningless." Naruto buried his face in his hands, his breathing becoming erratic. After a moment he managed to calm down, raising his head up he seemed almost calm, "I'll talk to Kurama, we'll break the genjutsu and make it all right," He said firmly, "we'll win the war, beat some sense into Sasuke. It won't have been for nothing, it...it can't have been for nothing."
The professor watched his prized student as she meticulously read through the files on Naruto. The slight widening of her eyes was the only outward indication of how strange or surprising she found the contents of that folder. It was somewhat more informative than the one he had given Scott to read but not the complete file. Besides him only Moria and Logan had access to that, and the rest of his unabridged archives that file belonged too.
He suspected Raven may have acquired her own partial copy of those records two years back during her brake in, it would explain how she had known of Wanda Maximoff. But now was not the time to ponder such things, "As you can no doubt tell the boy is lost in more ways than one," Xavier stated, "if possible I'd like you to handle Naruto's sessions from now on, to provide the guidance he needs." Jean's emotional control slipped this time,
"Me?" The redhead looked down at the files, "With all due respect sir I think I'd be out of my depth on this in more ways than one. I've taken a few courses in counseling but that's it, this is a case unlike an-" Jean stopped when Xavier raised his hand,
"You greatly underestimate your talent Jean," He then smiled cryptically, "and I have good reason to believe he'll be far more open to you than me." Seeing Jean still look hesitant the professor sighed, "Naruto resents me for keeping him confined to Muir Island, perhaps I should brought him to the Institute in the first place."
"Why didn't you sir?"
"I wanted to avoid adding culture shock to his many problems. His mind was fragile and Muir Island struck me as being a far more peaceful setting for catharsis than here." He gave a weary smile, "Even under the best of circumstances this place is seldom peaceful, added to which I found him just after the incident in New York." Jean nodded in understanding, the entire eastern seaboard had been in chaos in the wake of the "incident". The young woman closed the file and looked up at her mentor,
"I still think I'm underqualified but I'll try," She said uncertainly, her emerald eyes glanced down at the folder curiously, "The file mentioned that Naruto appears to have years worth of implanted memories?"
"Yes," Xavier said looking uncertain, "these memories are not unlike Rogue's personality fragments in terms of the damage they've done to the boy's mind." He said sadly, "I believe since the bulk of the these memories are of some manner of training I believe they may have been implanted for the purposes of increasing the lad's combat abilities with very little regard or understanding of the damage done." Jean started reading off the effects to herself,
"Weakened impulse control leading to emotional instability, erratic behavior, self-destructive tendencies, and paranoia... oh my god this poor boy." Jean said quietly,
"All this further exasperated by his other mental issues. This young man, Logan, and Rogue together represent an encyclopedia's worth of posthuman mental health problems." The professor saidas he maneuvered his chair to face the window of his study, "Given these and other issues I must forbid from entering the boy's mind. If for whatever reason you need to subdue him a simple psychic blast will suffice." Jean was a little confused by the cryptic order but didn't question it as she got up to leave.
Location Unknown
In his cruelest, most cynical moments Erik couldn't help but wonder if it was almost fortunate that his beloved Magda had died giving birth to Pietro else she might have died of shame at the sight of the man he had become. Erik watched as his only son gossiped with the Acolytes like a school girl over the latest drama from Charles's apparently increasingly debauched school.
"Sorry guys they're broken up for good this time," The white haired teen said excitedly, "Lance accidently spilled the beans to Kitty's parents about popping her cherry in the back of his cherry." He paled momentarily dimming his gleeful expression, "that voice mail she left our machine was actually pretty freaky. I think she hangs out with Wolverine to much," He muttered before turning back to the others with his hand extended, "Anyways I won the bet, pay up!"
Watching his son and his elite Acolytes find both amusement and profit in the heartache of a young woman almost shook his faith in his belief of mutant superiority. Most of his follows were mercenaries rather than genuine followers of his ideology, should he come across younger recruits he would make a point of molding them the way Charles had with his followers. His old friend had created a cult of personality Joseph Stalin would've envied, he almost pitied the X-Men.
"Father?" Pietro's tone was respectful as he addressed his father, Eric's dark green eyes focused on the boy,
"Are you through gossiping?" He asked his son dryly, conveying some disappointment. The young speedster seemed a little embarrassed,
"Yes sir, sorry," Pietro said, "hearing about the X-Geek's love lives is really the only thing they have for entertainment. Do you ever think about getting cable or something?" Erik blinked,
"If it diverts them away from this disturbing fixation I will strongly consider it. I certainly hope you show far respect to the young women you are involved with then that imbecilic friend of yours."
"Yeah...totally." Pietro said not looking his old man in the eye, "So what's this about dad?" he asked eager to change the subject, without speaking Erik turned around and pushed a button on the console,
"Joanna? I need you to come here please."
"Yes sir." A strong female voice answered, Pietro raised a curious eyebrow,
"My son, I would strongly advise you to behave yourself." Before Pietro could respond the doors to main area opened and in walked a formidable looking nineteen year old African American woman. In the absence of an expression that clearly said "Don't fuck with me bitch" Pietro would have found her black leather clad well-toned figure very attractive. She looked at him clearly not impressed,
"This your boy sir?"
"Yes," Looking at "his boy" Erik said, "Pietro I'd like to introduce to Joanna Cargill who's mutant name is Frenzy. She will be providing your team much needed training," Eric mentally readied himself for the incoming hissy fit, "and leadership."
"WHAT!?" The speedster said sound simultaneously hurt and indignant, "What's wrong with the job I've doing."
"EVERYTHING!" His father's tone quelled any desire to voice further dissent, "CHIEF AMONG THEM WAS FAILING TO INFORM ME OF YOUR SISTER'S RELAPSE!" Frenzy raised an eyebrow but said nothing. Erik tempered his rage before continuing,"Her defection to SHIELD's superhuman strike team is potentially disastrous for the entirety of our cause!" Pietro hung his head low so his father wouldn't see his tears; Wanda was probably one of the few people he truly cared about more than himself. The other person he cared aboutcontinued to chew him out, "I've gave you command of the Brotherhood in the hopes you would learn a modicum of responsibility but you instead handled it with an ineptitude that shames me!" Eric sat quietly for a moment to compose himself before speaking again, "This isn't a game my son," His tone softer than before, "Apocalypse and the incident in New York have changed things. It is no longer Charles's overly pious children you risk provoking with such actions. Do you understand?"
"Yes father," Pietro said quietly, "I do."
"Good," He said and turned back towards the various monitors, "I will be sending Frenzy over in three days, I suggest you and your friends prepare yourselves. I have very good reason to believe the war will soon be upon us." Eric said as he pulled up a video of a man who looked to be in fifties who appeared to be giving a speech. With his combed back grey hair and charming smile the man had a grandfatherly look to him. Yet in his pale blue eyes Magneto saw a glimmer of madness he had not scene in since the fall of the Third Reich, "Very soon."
Xavier Institute
The Next Day
Crouched on the roof of the manor Naruto watched as the students left in groups into the town beyond the gates. He help but be reminded of the Hyuga compound back in Konoha, a luxuriant but fortified home separated from the main village. They claimed to be an academy but the way they interacted with one another was almost clannish.
Naruto then turned his attention from them to the town architecture did strike him as a little strange but none the less seemed to have the feel of a large town or perhaps a small city. Xavier had forbidden him from leaving the school grounds yet had assured him he wasn't a prisoner. What would happen if he tried to leave? Would he hit some kind of barrier proving this reality false?
"Excuse me?" A female voice asked, "Are you Naruto?" The young man turned around and for the first time in a long time his colorless expression broke with a widening of the eyes. She hovered above him like an apparition, her long fiery hair floating as if it had a will of it's own.
"Ka-san?" He said torn between hope disbelief, had his mother managed to reach himfrom beyond the grave one last? If there was ever a time he needed guidance or wanted a shoulder to cry on it was now. His hope shattered like a fallen windowpane upon the ground as the woman descended in front of him. With her features no longer blocked out by the glare of the sun it was instantly clear that she wasn't his mom.
Her green eyes regarded him with a great deal of concern upon seeing the young man look ready to break down into tears, "I'm sorry if scared you," She said to him, "my name is Jean Grey, we had a session scheduled to start ten minutes ago so I came looking for you." Naruto seemed to have regained some level of self-control before replying.
"So your my new head doctor?" He asked, Xavier had mentioned something about that before having him brought here.
"Well I'm more of a guidance councilor than a therapist." Jean explained as she set next to him on the the absence of telekinetic flight Jean might been a little nervous about being on the roof top of a multistory manor. Naruto seemed unfazed by that at least, something about her had nearly caused him to fall to pieces, "You seemed really upset a minute ago, would you like to talk about that?"
"No," he said quickly, "I really don't want to." He looked out at the town, his expression becoming distant.
"We don't have to talk about it if you don't to," Jean assured him, "But I think you need to talk; about what your feeling now or what you went through before you came here."
"Why?" No telepathy was needed to pick up on the resentment in his tone. She could see all the horrors he had experienced practically etched into his face.
"Because Naruto being able to articulate those feelings is the first step towards being able to resolve those feelings." Jean took a deep breath, "I know how...easy it seems to just to disconnect from your feelings about something horrible that's happened to you rather then face them."
"How?" Jean looked at him for a moment, it wasn't something she had spoken of with a lot of people. But the young woman hoped that opening up about herself might encourage Naruto to do the same. She looked out at Bayville, a place that had become her second home.
"Most mutants only have a single main ability," Jean Grey explained as she made her cellphone levitate, "I have two: my telekinesis which lets me move objects with my mind but I'm also a telepath."
"Like the old man?" In most circumstances Jean would've have bristled at hearing someone reefer to the Professor in such disrespectful terms but in light of the subject she was discussing Jean let it pass.
"Yes, but not as powerful." Jean said modestly, "My powers manifested when I was around eight maybe earlier actually. I sometimes heard what I thought were whispers or have strange dreams. My parents thought it was my over active imagination." Jean reminisced as sadness marred her lovely features "One day I was playing with my best friend, a girl named Annie." Jean felt her eyes moisten as she continued,"I accidentally kicked the ball into the street. She went to grab it just as a car came out of nowhere...it all happened so fast but I was linked to her in those last seconds...I felt her die," The images of Annie's bloodied body came to mind, she closed her eyes and inhaled deeply before continuing, "the shock of it all left me in a coma for weeks. It was the Professor who helped bring me out of it helped to both learn to control my powers and to come to terms with Annie's death."
"It sounds like it still hurts." Naruto commented quietly,
"Of course it does Naruto," Jean said gently, "She was one of the closest friends I ever had, when you lose someone that close to you the hurt never really goes away." She explained, "But I learned to cope with it, to channel it into something positive. But for the first few months after waking up from the coma I didn't want to deal with how sad or angry or confused I felt about everything so I went numb. Even after all these years some days I just have a lot of trouble focusing on what's going on around me " She could see cracks forming in the ninja's emotionless expression, "I'd really like to help you if you'll let me Naruto."
"I don't think anybody here can help me." The ninja said as he looked at her, "It's not just that I don't feel anything most of the time but also that I can't feel anything at all from the people around me anymore!" There was a touch of hysteria to his tone now, "It's..it's like this place isn't even real, a fucking illusion!" Tears streamed down his face as he voiced his long held suspicions about this world, "Why else do the people here not seem real!?" Naruto very quickly became considerably more audible and hysterical, "Why else would I be kept prisoner first on that fucking island and now here!"
Jean needed a moment to process what the seething blond had just told her. The outbursts of anger she had known to expect from reading the file, what he had admitted during said outburst was unexpected. The telepath could understand how Naruto might come to that conclusion for several reasons. First was the fact that through his eyes this world probably was very strange to him, unreal even considering the differences in technology.
There was perhaps the chance that it was a form of denial; who'd want to admit they really was a universe away from everyone and everything they knew? The last was a factor Jean could fully understand: the virtual short circuiting of his empathic abilities. People who possessed extra sensory abilities based like telepathy and empathy or something like Logan's enhanced senses were profoundly dependent upon them. Their loss would be as disorienting as suddenly going blind or deaf would be for most people under the best of circumstances.
Jean, thankful for her accelerated thought process, placed a comforting hand on the shoulder of the hyperventilating teen who sputtering words in his native language, "Naruto?", The compassionate gesture was initially unnoticed but a heart beat later his head jerked up. His cerulean eyes had become slitted which in conjunction with his now quite palpable anger gave her pause. Once more something the file failed to mention but adaptability was a trait that she had learned as a member of the X-Men. Jean kept her voice and expression soothing as she stared into those feral eyes.
"Naruto I promise you, everything you see here is real." Jean told him, "I know how unfair it seems to have to be confined like this but it's for your safety and for the people out there." She said gesturing towards the town, "I know that you get angry sometimes, that you've punched holes in the walls of your old room back on the island," Some of the tension and anger bled from Naruto's posture as his eyes returned to normal, "that you've broken things, that you've blown up on people. What if you had an outburst like that in the middle of the crowd?"
"I've...I've never hurt anyone that didn't deserve it." He told her sounding almost hurt.
"I know you haven't," Jean said gently, "but the people in town wouldn't know that. You'd really frighten them Naruto. I don't think you'd want that do you?" His demeanor by now had completely changed gone was the feral anger and even the emotional numbness. Despite being a few years younger than her he now seemed old and like Logan the few times he dared let down his guard.
"I just want to go home." He told her wearily, "That's what I want. I want to go back to Konoha, to my friends, and try to make everything right." Jean had to work to keep herself from tearing up before responding.
"The Professor's done everything he could to find a way to send you home. It's just that your the first recorded instance of someone arriving from a parallel reality, it's unprecedented. There's a chance we might find a way someday but for now it looks like your here permanently." She hated having to explain that to him but it was the young woman's hope that acceptance would be a first step towards healing. Instead Naruto stood up, seething his teeth barred including his large and surprising sharp looking canines. Jean also couldn't help but notice that he was able to keep his footing the angle of the roof,
"I CAN'T ACEPPT THAT!" He snarled in anger, "DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MUCH MY FRIENDS NEEDED ME!? ANY IDEA HOW MANY PROMISES I MADE!? AM I JUST SUPPOSED TO FORGET ABOUT ALL THAT?" The slitted eyes had returned, her emerald eyes didn't break contact this time. She could feel the pain that fueled his rage but had to raise her mental shields. While Naruto's ability to sense emotions had been damaged his capacity to project them was still intact. Like before the anger dissipated leaving the boy looking emotionally drained. He hung his head low, "I'm...I'm sorry...I shouldn't scream at people like that." Jean could see tear drops falling from his face,"Especially you."
The tone gave her pause, she though of he had looked at her when she had introduced herself earlier. Jean wonder what exactly about her that elicited such a strong reaction. Did professor know he'd be like this? Was this why Xavier insisted on her counseling him?
"I blew up on people all the time when I first got here, usually sending the surrounding furniture into the wall or out the window in the process," She told as she sat down next to him, "the Professor helped me work through that anger, if you let me I can help you work for it to." Jean sat next to him, "You need to work through this Naruto, if you somehow did go back right now would you be in any shape to help anyone?" He jerked his head up looking livid for the briefest of moments but seemed to calm himself down.
"No" The ninja answered bitterly.
"Then let me help you," Jean said and stood up, "we can talk more in my office."
Jean's Office
An Hour Later
Once they had gotten settled in the office the session had gone somewhat smoother. Naruto had opened up about his feelings towards the Professor and Moria. While Jean didn't like questioning the professor's decision confining him to Muir Island for so long may not have the healthiest thing for him emotionally.
She had hoped to start addressing his wartime experiences and perhaps his younger years but had the feeling it would be quite sometime before he'd open up about that. That's how therapy worked, more often than not you wound up having to work your way through layer upon layer to reach it's heart. Like solving the Gordian Knot without the benefit of a blade really and honestly this was far from the best of starts but Jean didn't consider herself a quitter.
"All right Naruto I'd like you to come back here next Saturday." The spiky haired blonde nodded looking fairly ridiculous seated in the over-sized beanbag chair intended for the younger students of the Institute, "Remember those breathing exercises I taught you if you start to feel angry."
"Yes Jean-san." Naruto said as he got up to leave looking on slightly better then she had found him on the roof, Jean sighed as he was about to head out the door.
"Naruto wait," It was something she had been considering but wasn't certain if it was feasible. She did understand that was a process that took time but the perfectionist in her just couldn't leave well enough alone, "I want you to make an effort to socialize with the people, if you can do that without incident I'll talk to the Professor after our next session about letting leave the Institute. Naruto's eye widened like saucers,
"Really?" Jean held up her hand.
"I don't know if he'll say yes but if I can show him that you can interact with people without incident." Jean hated seeing the cautious optimism gone from his eyes but she didn't want to give him false hope.
"I'll try Jean-san," There was a moment's hesitation before he extended his hand, "I promise." Jean smiled warmly at him as she shook his hand. A gesture that oddly enough seemed to elicit an odd array of feelings but not wanting to undo what progress had been made she didn't question it.
Naruto's Room
Five Minutes Later
Naruto looked down at the photo of his parents, like the rest of the few things from his old life it was a little tattered. With moistened eyes he looked at his long dead mother, her lovely red hair and kind smile not unlike Jean Gray's. The ninja snarled, if this was the Infinite Tsukiyomithen UchihaObito was a dead man. He didn't give a fuck about his feelings or how sorry he might be Naruto only wanted to jam his thumbs into that bastards eye sockets.
If it wasn't the dream of a madman responsible for him being placed in the care of a woman who was the spitting image of his mother that left Xavier. If this was some kind of sick mind game on that bald jackass's part Naruto didn't know if he'd be able to stop himself from wringing that cripple's neck. He closed his eyes and sighed, illusion or not the ninja that didn't have it in him to break a promise to woman who looked like his mother, "I can play nice one last time I guess."
Author's Notes: Well folks as you can see I've opted with the reboot approach. I've edited out most of the errors and changed a few details. I'm really working to make this a more polished version taking into account some of the criticisms I've received about the previous version. For example Logan and Naruto's fight will shown and I'll try to balance things a little better. I have saved the previous version of this story on SkyDrive where all chapters of all my stories will be stored from now on.
I will also endeavor to have this be the roughly the length of all subsequent chapters. I hope all of enjoy this version as much, if not more so than the previous one. Don't forget to review, peace out!
Fanfic Recommendations:
Warning: Hitchhikers May Be Escaping Nazis by Baxyratty: A Batman/Hellsing crossover that deserves a lot more love than it gets. Hans and Schrodinger betray the Major at the battle in London ending in Gotham City. Genre wise it's horror mixed with black humor at it's finest imho.